PicoScope 7 Automotive Software

[Steve Smith]

Thank you once again to the software teams for their continued dedication to the development of PicoScope 7 Automotive Early Access 7.0.121.14753 (inc. Pico Diagnostics 1.16.88.0) which can be downloaded here https://www.picoauto.com/downloads

New features

Phase measurement

PicoScope 7 now includes Phase measurements to display the phase difference between two selected channels
• Click on the “Measurements” button in the left-hand tool panel to reveal the measurement options
• Note, we now have a “beta” Multi-Channel measurement option called “Phase”

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• Click on the “Phase” measurement to display the phase difference between channels A and B. These are the default channels for phase measurements, with Channel A being the “Source” channel and Channel B being the “Source 2” channel by which to measure & display the phase difference

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• Clicking on the settings “cog” within the measurement lozenge will reveal several options to modify your phase measurement:
• Below we can amend the “Source Channels”, choose the section of the graph to measure, select an “Output Range” (default 360°), decide on how to determine the measurement “Threshold” and finally, the level of “Hysteresis”

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• Below we have added multiple “Large” phase measurements between all phases using a combination of “Between time rulers” and “Whole trace”

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• In the following image, we have created a second scope view and zoomed into identical areas of the graph; Scope view 1 displays the phase measurements “Between the time rulers” for all channels. Scope view 2 uses the phase and time rulers to qualify the displayed measurement value for Channels A & B (i.e., displayed measurement for Channel A & B = 122.1°, phase and time ruler measurement for Channels A & B = 122°)

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Feedback on the design and function of the “Phase measurement” feature would be most welcome
Click on More > Send Feedback within the software


MATLAB file format save feature now active

Following on from Ben’s forum post here viewtopic.php?p=104127#p104127 we can now save files in “. mat” format for those who wish to export to MATLAB

Feedback on the design and function of the “. Mat” format save feature would be most welcome
Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Bug fixes

• Several improvements to Persistence mode
• Resolve zoom overview controls not visible (Linux)

I hope this helps, take care......Steve

[DrivelineMaster]

Hi Steve,
This is exciting. I couldn't wait to download the latest early release to check it out. I'm always looking for ways to apply all the many features in PS7 to automotive diagnosis. I'm wondering if the Multi-Channel Phase measurement can be used to map out the phase timing that takes place between a crank signal and the camshaft changes in Variable Valve Timing (VVT) vehicles. Correlating the timing based on VVT solenoid duty cycle could help a lot of technicians during VVT diagnosis. If so, could you provide guidance and instructions?

[Steve Smith]

Hello and thank you for the post

Here, we are into the realms of graphing phase shift and I will follow up soon as there is a lot to consider

Take care......Steve

[DrivelineMaster]

Hi Steve,
I hated to give up Pico 6 and now I absolutely love PS7 and I'm not looking back. For those of you who don't want to move just know that Pico is not putting anymore development into PS6. The advancements, features and easy access to features is awesome and with a little effort playing with PS7 in demo mode in your off time you will come to love PS7 too. I'm an instructor who teaches technicians scopes and every PS6 user whom I teach PS7 leaves class saying they are going home and installing PS7 as soon as they get back to the shop. For those of you who can't find the properties window because you are always readjusting your sample rate to make sure you don't over or under sample. That is gone because there is no need for it anymore. PS7's sample rate mode solves that. Set the sampling to "Sample Rate". Now return back to the scope and change the timebase and watch the sample interval at the bottom of the menu. It doesn't change at all, the sampling is consistent over a wide range of timebases. It will change a little at the very high and very low timebase settings. This is fantastic and one major reason to switch. You can now prevent under or over sampling anytime you change your timebase during diagnosis. I have some PS7 training videos that are short and helpful on my YouTube channel "DrivelineMaster" (https://www.youtube.com/drivelinemaster) and I plan more in the future. By the way, the new zoom and measurements are also awesome. Thank you Pico from an instructor who was also hesitant to give up PS6. Sampling video: [httpsyoutube]https://youtu.be/RQsMPEAq35M[/httpsyoutube] Zoom Video: [httpsyoutube]https://youtu.be/bKuQKORDcsQ[/httpsyoutube]

[Steve Smith]

Hello and thank you for the post and what a question too.

Thank you also for the training you provide to the delegates under your wing. Rest assured you are changing lives and make this challenging profession a little easier by instilling knowledge (nothing is easy)

Moving onto your request, we wish to graph the change of phase between cam and crank in relation to a change in VVT duty control

Starting with our next proposed release of PicoScope 7 Early access version 7.0.124 we will have phase math’s and delay measurements which I will add here as soon as it is released

Below is a preview

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The above could go someway to graphing the change in correlation between Cam and Crank and I will get to work on this ASAP

In the meantime, we have looked at such options here looking at inter channel timing measurements with Deep Measure topic21776.html

Deep Measure for PicoScope 7 can be found here viewtopic.php?p=103559#p103559

Here topic21754-10.html we capture the phase shift using cam and crank correlation measurement techniques and reference waveforms

Scroll down to the animation and video within the above forum post link (I think this would good for the delegates to practice)

The next forum post looks at numerous options when it comes to triggering across engine ranges; not quite what we are trying to achieve but worth noting if we do not have scan tool control over VVT duty and wish to free the engine instead viewtopic.php?p=103937#p103937

Ironically at the end of the above forum post we allude to a “rotation domain” which would be very helpful indeed (Noted by Pico and the software team, said too much already)

We have experimented with a half way house towards a rotation domain using the frequency of the engine as our X axis viewtopic.php?p=100319#p100319 This would most certainly be worth revisiting to see how we can demonstrate correlation shift live

Persistence mode would be another worthy journey too viewtopic.php?p=104061#p104061

I will get to work on a number of these techniques and feedback ASAP (Likely to me be mid next week)

I hope these help in the interim and I hope it does not feel like I have answered your question with a question

“We live and learn together”

Take care…..Steve

[Steve Smith]

Thank you once again to the software teams for their continued dedication to the development of PicoScope 7 Automotive Early Access 7.1.4.15470 (inc. Pico Diagnostics 1.16.96.0) which can be downloaded here https://www.picoauto.com/downloads

New features

Delay measurements

Following on from our recent Phase measurement feature here viewtopic.php?p=104135&sid=078d2a54faee ... 88#p104135 we have now added “Delay” measurements

• Click on the “Measurements” button in the left-hand tool panel to reveal the measurement options
• Note, we have now added “Delay” to our Multi-Channel measurement option

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• Click on the “Delay” measurement to display the configuration panel where you can specify the “Source” and “Source 2” which are the channels you wish to measure the delay in terms of TIME (seconds)
• In addition to the above, choose the area of the graph you wish to measure “Delay”, (i.e., between the Time rulers) along with the desired scope view, threshold and hysteresis levels

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• Note below we can confirm the “Delay” in terms of Time between “Source” (Channel A) and “Source 2” (Channel B) between the time rulers in scope view 1 is 2.720 ms
• Note also how scope view 2 measures this time delay manually between channels A & B at their respective 0 V crossing point

Image 3

Feedback on the design and function of the “Delay” measurement feature would be most welcome
Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Phase and Delay math channel

PicoScope 7 now includes Phase and Delay math channels to enable graphing of the phase difference and time delay between selected channels across the entire graph

• Click on the “Math channels” button in the left-hand tool panel to open the Math channel library and “Add” option
• Click on the “+Add” button to open the Math channel wizard
• Choose “Phase” and enter the letters of the desired channels you wish to graph the phase difference (shift) followed by “Next”

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• Choose a name, colour, units, and Min/Max range for your phase math channel and close the wizard by clicking on “Finish”

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• Below we plot the phase difference (shift) between channels A & B with the magenta math channel named “phase(A, B)”. Assuming our phase remains fixed between channels A & B (Approx 120 °) then our math channel should resemble a straight line at approx. 120°

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• Below we repeat the above process but use “Delay” instead of “Phase” to graph any deviations in the time delay between channels A & B

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• Note above the black math channel “Delay(A, B)” returns any deviations in time between channels A & B where once again (assuming our delay remains fixed) our math channel should resemble a straight line at approx. 0 seconds

Feedback on the design and function of the “Phase & Delay” math channel feature would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Rotation partition count increased

Rotation Partitions can now be increased to 32 from the previous maximum count of 12

• Click on the “Rulers” button in the left-hand tool panel to open the Rulers tool panel
• Select Phase rulers “On” and amend partition counter to a maximum of 32
• Below we divide 720° of crankshaft rotation by 32 partitions to derive 22.5° intervals

Image 8

Feedback on the design and function of the “Rotation partitions” feature would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Bug fixes

• Several improvements to CAN XL serial decoder
• Stability improvements to Window Pulse Width triggering (All platforms)
• Resolve device stops communicating with the software after the computer enters sleep mode
• Improve serial decoder wizard and table layout for new Extended UART decoder
• Applicable BNC+ probes now supported when using frequency counter
• Improve stability of graph view when zooming after capturing in streaming mode
• Reorder toolbar icons to ensure all PS7 versions are aligned
• Resolve locked time rulers change delta value when returned to zoomed graph
• Improve functionality and reliability of “Reset configuration” feature
• Reference waveforms now include vertical scale, offset and delay controls in reference waveform control panel

I hope this helps, take care……..Steve

[Steve Smith]

Thank you once again to the software teams for their continued dedication to the development of PicoScope 7 Automotive Early Access 7.1.8.15960 (inc. Pico Diagnostics 1.16.102.0) which can be downloaded here https://www.picoauto.com/downloads

Before I go on, I must apologize as there have been 4 builds of PicoScope 7 Early Access since my last post. I will summarize them all below:

PicoScope 7.1.5 Early Access (inc. Pico Diagnostics 1.16.98.0)

New Features

The Pico Toolbox App now allows users to edit a waveform to include Vehicle Type within “Toolbox Waveform Manager.” “Vehicle Type” will soon be visible on the waveform cards within Toolbox.

More information on the Waveform Manager can be seen here viewtopic.php?p=103911#p103911

• Click on the “More” button in the left-hand tool panel and select “Waveform Manager”
• Note: Clicking on the “Star” symbol to the left of the “Waveform Manager” symbol will place the “Waveform Manager” button in the left-hand tool panel where it will remain ready for use without having to select “More”
• The Toolbox Waveform Manager dialog box will now open (N.B internet connection will be required)
• Import a psdata file of your choice using the “Import files” button (see below)

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• With your psdata file imported, click on the edit option where you can now include “Vehicle Type”

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Please note “Vehicle Type” will now be available in all Vehicle Details sections of Toolbox. (This excludes Searching in the Waveform Library)

Feedback on the design and function of the “Pico Toolbox Waveform Manager feature” would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Bug Fixes 7.1.5 Early Access (inc. Pico Diagnostics 1.16.98.0)

• Loading files with locked rulers no longer prevents unlocking the rulers.
• Time ruler delta will now correctly update when moving the second phase ruler.
topic23106.html
• Adjustment to the phase ruler shading to increase the contrast and improve visibility.
• Fixed situation where it was not possible to enter negative dB values for Spectrum rulers.
• Improve stability of NVH when entering notes into sensor location field

PicoScope 7.1.6 Early Access (inc. Pico Diagnostics 1.16.99.0)

New Features

New Beta Measurement options are now available to denote the following conditions:

Top & Base: These display the high and low levels of a signal minus “noise or ringing”
Amplitude: This will display the difference between Top and Base values mentioned above
Positive & Negative overshoot: These display the value of “spikes” above or below the Top or Base of a signal (Expressed as a percentage)

Note that all the above measurements display values that deviate from the “Steady State” of a signal

For a detailed explanation of the above measurement features, our Test & Measurement colleagues have created two fantastic articles here:

Top, Base & Amplitude: https://www.picotech.com/library/oscill ... icoscope-7

Overshoot: https://www.picotech.com/library/oscill ... icoscope-7

• Click on the “More” button in the left-hand tool panel and select “Measurements”
• Note: Clicking on the “Star” symbol to the left of the “Measurements” symbol will place the “Measurements” button in the left-hand tool panel where it will remain ready for use without having to select “More”
• Note the Measurement tool panel is now revealed where the above beta measurements can be applied to the signal in view

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• Below we have applied Top, Base, Amplitude, Positive Overshoot & Negative Overshoot to our 4-stroke signal between the time rulers

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Feedback on the design and function of the “Beta measurements” above would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Bug Fixes 7.1.6 Early Access (inc. Pico Diagnostics 1.16.99.0)

• Fixed issue where data could sometimes appear wrong for complex MAF math channels.
• Font size for icon buttons on OpenSuse has been increased.
• Rotation rulers now allow up to 36 partitions.
• Fixed translations issues in the Waveform Manager

PicoScope 7.1.7 Early Access (inc. Pico Diagnostics 1.16.101.0)

New Features

Top, Base, Amplitude, Positive and Negative Overshoot measurements can now be incorporated into math channels so as to graph the deviation in any of these values.

• Click on the More button in the left-hand tool panel to reveal all the available options for PicoScope 7
• Click on the Math Channel button to open the Math Channel Wizard
• Note: Clicking on the “Star” symbol to the left of the math channel symbol will place the math channel button in the left-hand tool panel where it will remain ready for use without having to select More
• With the math channel wizard open, create the formula required.
• In the image below we created a negative overshoot math channel “negovershoot(A)”

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• Click Next and select the Name, Units (default %) Range and Colour required for your math channel, followed by “Finish”
• The Negative Overshoot math channel will then appear in the graph view along with the associated lozenge above the left-hand tool panel.
• Clicking on the math channel lozenge will enable you to edit or remove the math channel if required
• Below we are graphing the negative overshoot present on our Hall-effect crankshaft signal

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Feedback on the design and function of the “New math channels” above would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Once again, our T&M colleagues have covered these 5 new math channel options in the following articles:

Overshoot maths: https://www.picotech.com/library/oscill ... icoscope-7

Top, Base & Amplitude maths: https://www.picotech.com/library/oscill ... icoscope-7

Please scroll down the above articles to view the math channel applications

Trigger enhancements

Both the Pulse width and Window pulse width triggers are now able to trigger for “Either” polarity where previously, Positive and Negative “Direction” were the only options

• Click on the trigger lozenge to open the trigger dialog box
• Select desired trigger mode (we have opted for “Repeat”) followed by “Change Type”
• You can now select “Pulse width” or “Window pulse width” with “Either” as one of your trigger “Directions”
• Below we have opted for a Pulse width trigger @ a 3 V threshold, triggering on “Either” direction where a pulse width exceeds (“Greater than”) 582.7 µs

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Feedback on the design and function of the “Pulse width trigger options” above would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Pico Toolbox

This month’s Pico Automotive Newsletter (July 23) describes the ongoing development of the powerful Pico Toolbox.

“PicoScope 7: Exciting upgrades to guided tests and the toolbox application

PicoScope 7 Automotive Early Access has recently received a substantial upgrade for oscilloscope guided tests. This development also marks the transformation of the PicoScope 7 Automotive Waveform library and Waveform management application, into a new, full-blown, automotive Toolbox support application. It marks a significant advance, equipping you all, but especially those of you in the early stages of your oscilloscope diagnostics journey, with ever more powerful diagnostic capabilities, and providing us with further application integration opportunities.

What's New?

The new versatile, Toolbox application is accessible on multiple platforms so, for the first time ever, we have Guided test support in PicoScope on macOS and Linux platforms, as well as Windows. No matter which operating system you prefer, the Guided tests are now at your fingertips, streamlining your diagnostic processes with ease.

To cater to our diverse global community of automotive technicians, we have expanded the availability of Guided tests to 14 supported languages.

"We are thrilled to introduce these groundbreaking upgrades to our automotive oscilloscope Guided tests in the Toolbox application. By expanding platform compatibility and language support, we aim to empower automotive technicians worldwide with the ability to diagnose and troubleshoot with ease and precision. And from here on, the Toolbox will provide an ever-strengthening pillar of diagnostic support to all our users." - Phil Service, Automotive Business Development Manager at Pico Technology

Stay tuned for more updates, and explore the enhanced Guided tests in the Toolbox application to elevate your diagnostic capabilities to new heights.”


Just reading through the above comments, there can be no doubt the Pico Toolbox will continue to evolve and become the essential source of information for everything “Pico”.

As we move forward together, the possibilities are endless given the Toolbox is web based, so providing infinite flexibility with regards to future developments.

Bug fixes

• Changes made to the Notes in the save dialog are now correctly saved.
• Save file as CSV now correctly formats the data when using different system regional formats.

PicoScope 7.1.8 Early Access (inc. Pico Diagnostics 1.16.102.0)

Two new serial decoders have now been added to the Serial Decoder Menu

NMEA-0183 (National Marine Electronics Association)
More information can be found here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NMEA_0183

SENT SPC (Single Edge Nibble Transmission Short Pulse-Width Code)
More information can be found here https://www.nxp.com/docs/en/application-note/AN4856.pdf

• To access the serial decoder menu, please refer to the following link viewtopic.php?p=101144#p101144
• Below we have the current range of serial decoders with the new protocols labelled accordingly

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Feedback on the design and function of the new “Serial decoders” above would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Pico Toolbox

Users can now search for waveforms via powertrain type.
Users can now upload waveforms with a powertrain type.
Users can now edit their powertrain waveform type within Toolbox.

Please refer to the following forum post viewtopic.php?p=104493#p104493 which describes how to edit “Vehicle Type” and note we can now include “Powertrain type” where we now have Internal combustion engine, Electric and Hybrid options

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Feedback on the design and function of the “Vehicle details dialog” above would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Bug fixes

• Resolved an issue where Math Channels returned too large values when using x10 probes or Resolution Enhance.
• Resolved an occasional crash when switching between a large rapid capture and persistence mode.
• Resolved an issue where derivative Math channels were sometimes displayed incorrectly.
• Improved performance when running with histogram-based math channels (top, base, amplitude and positive/negative overshoot).
• The Toolbox Guided Tests button now shows in the top toolbar of PicoScope 7 Automotive.
• The Clear button within Toolbox Search now shows when Vehicle Type is selected.
• Image captions are now visible in dark mode within Toolbox Guided Tests.
• Filter counts now update with Engine Code selection within Toolbox Search.
• E3 tool tip text bug now resolved with NVH

I hope the above helps, take care……Steve

[Steve Smith]

Thank you once again to the software teams for their continued dedication to the development of PicoScope 7 Automotive Early Access 7.1.9.16160 (inc. Pico Diagnostics 1.16.103.0) which can be downloaded here https://www.picoauto.com/downloads

New Features

New Off-Highway and Heavy-Duty Guided test category added

With special thanks to Ben Martins and the team, we now have 10 x totally new Guided tests aimed directly at the Off-Highway (OH) and Heavy-Duty (HD) industry

Upon opening PicoScope 7 Automotive software, or clicking on the Guided Test button, we are presented with the Toolbox: Guided test menu

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• Click on the Heavy-Duty/Off-Highway button to reveal a list of all applicable Guided tests (see image below)

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• Select the relevant Guided test where you have the option to open a "Settings file" or the “Guide and Settings file"

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• Below we have opted to open the Guide and Settings file for “24 V starting and charging – in parallel” where you can read How to perform the test, view an Example waveform, refer to the Waveform library and digest the Further guidance section

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Feedback on the design and function of the “Pico OH & HD Guided Tests” would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Measurements (Cycle at trigger point)

PicoScope 7 now includes a Cycle at trigger feature when applying several measurements options with an active trigger

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• Above we have opted for a Frequency measurement not only across the entire capture but also the frequency of the cycle at the trigger.
• The example above results in identical values for both cycle at trigger and for the entire capture as the frequency does not change.

Feedback on the design and function of the “Measurement options” would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Total power entry field

The Pico Toolbox App now allows users to upload waveforms with “Total power” values along with a provision to edit “Total power” in the Waveform Manager.

“Total power” is also listed on “My Waveforms” and “Waveform Manager” cards.

More information on the Waveform Manager can be seen here https://www.picoauto.com/support/viewto ... 11#p103911

• Click on the “More” button in the left-hand tool panel and select “Waveform Manager”
• Note: Clicking on the “Star” symbol to the left of the “Waveform Manager” symbol will place the “Waveform Manager” button in the left-hand tool panel where it will remain ready for use without having to select “More”
• The Toolbox Waveform Manager dialog box will now open (N.B internet connection will be required)
• Import a psdata file of your choice using the “Import files” button (see below)

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• With your psdata file imported, click on the edit option where you can now include “Total power”

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• Below we have an example “My Waveforms” card with the “Total power” value displayed accordingly

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• Note above how the “Uploads” button now appears in the top toolbar of the Pico Toolbox App
• The “Delete” (trash can) symbol can be used to delete your waveforms if required. The “delete” feature is referred to as “soft delete” whereby a 30-day grace period exists in which a deleted waveform can be restored. Please contact Pico via support@picotech.com to request the restoration of a deleted waveform
• Please note, whilst “Total power” will now be available in the Vehicle Details sections of Toolbox, it is not included as a search option in the Waveform Library at this stage of development

Feedback on the design and function of the “Pico Toolbox Waveform Manager feature” would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Bug fixes

• None to report this build

I hope this helps, take care………Steve

[Steve Smith]

I must apologise as several Early Access builds have been released since our last post above.

Below I have summarised all the relevant new features to PicoScope, PicoDiagnostics, PicoToolbox, and the applicable Bug Fixes

Build 7.1.11

New Features

Direction (High/Low) added to Dropout triggers.

Description of Level dropout trigger: Level dropout. This detects an edge followed by a specified time with no edges. It is useful for triggering on the end of a pulse train.

• Click on the Trigger Lozenge and select the Level dropout trigger option
• Note the “Dropout” direction can now be selected within the Level dropout trigger menu
• Below PicoScope 7 has triggered on our signal after detecting a high pulse greater than 30 ms after the previous edge

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• Below PicoScope 7 has triggered on our signal after detecting a Low pulse greater than 30 ms after the previous edge

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• Below, we zoom into the capture above and include the measurement value of elapsed time (30.14 ms) between the final detected edge and trigger point where no further edges were detected during the Low state of the signal

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Feedback on the design and function of the “Level dropout trigger options” would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

PicoToolbox New Features 7.1.11
• RWL icon now visible in top menu
• Number of Motors' value is visible on waveform cards
• Waveforms can now be edited to include a 'Number of Motors' value

Bug fixes in build 7.1.11
• Phase and Delay measurements now show both channel sources in print.
• User is now able to select gear when using calculate road speed with engine speed via OBD.
• Resolve language options missing from NVH
• Improve stability of PS7 with 4425A when using ConnectDetect

Build 7.1.12

New Features

Ranges offered for the TA041 Active Differential Probe have been updated and expanded.

More information on the +- 700 V x10/x100 Differential probe can be found here: https://www.picoauto.com/products//elec ... e-x10-x100

• Click on the channel option lozenge to reveal the probe tab
• Note when selecting the Differential probe image, we now have several attenuation options
• x10 & x100 are now included for use with the TA041 Differential probe along with the applicable input ranges

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Feedback on the design and function of the “Differential probe menu” would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Bug fixes in build 7.1.12
• Fixed issue where graph axes had become less responsive and slow to drag around.
• Resolved issues with uploading waveforms to the RWL
• IEPE PicoScopes now correctly showing additional coupling modes with the correct display unit.

Build 7.1.13

New Features

It is now possible to set Measurement Pass/Failure limits. This will give you a visual indication within the measurement lozenges whenever a measurement value is greater or less than a set pass/failure limit.

• Click on the “More” button in the left-hand tool panel to reveal all the available options for PicoScope 7
• Click on the Measurement button to reveal all the measurement options
• Note: Clicking on the “Star” symbol to the left of the Measurement symbol will place the Measurement button in the left-hand tool panel where it will remain ready for use without having to select More
• Add the required measurement to your captured signal.
• Below I have opted to add several measurements but with “Limits” applied to my RMS value

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• Note above how my RMS measurement includes an upper limit of 1.3 V and a lower limit of 1.2 V
• As long as my displayed RMS value (1.209 V above) remains within these set limits, the displayed value will remain black in colour
• Below my RMS value (1.152 V) has stepped outside the set limits and is displayed in the colour red to inform the user

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Feedback on the design and function of the “Measurements limit feature” would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software


PicoToolbox New Features 7.1.13
• Users are now able to edit waveforms within My Waveforms to include 'Number of Motors'
• Users are now able to edit waveforms within Waveform Manager to include 'Number of Motors'
• Users can see the Number of Motors field within all waveform cards in Toolbox
• Waveform cards are now customised by Powertrain for 'Number of Motors'

Bug fixes in build 7.1.13
• Surrounding Filter counts are now updated for Total Power within RWL
• Improve stability of “crash” reporter
• Dropout location (Inside/Outside/Either) added to Window Dropout triggers.

Build 7.1.15

New Features

Following on from the measurement limits feature above, all waveforms that pass or fail your set measurement limits can now be filtered within the Waveform navigator. This will make it easier to find and view all waveforms that pass or fail your set measurement limits.

• With your measurement limits set (as described above) and data captured, stop PicoScope and click on the Waveform navigator lozenge
• The Waveform navigator control panel will open to reveal the “Show thumbnails” field
• Using the drop-down arrow within the “Show thumbnails” field, select the desired option

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• Below we have requested the Waveform navigator display only waveforms that failed the RMS measurement limits set on channel A

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• Below; PicoScope 7 displays only 2 of the captured 25 waveforms as only buffer 22 & 23 meet the criteria of “Measurement limit failures on RMS (A)”

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Feedback on the design and function of the “Waveform navigator incorporating measurement limits” would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Show previous waveform

A new control has now been added to enable / disable showing the previous waveform while in progressive (streaming) capture mode.

• With PicoScope time base set to 200 ms/div or slower, click on the Time base and Sampling lozenge
• Select the Sampling tab and turn on the “Previous progressive waveform” option

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• Run PicoScope and note how a vertical line passes across the graph view from left to right during capture
• With the “Previous progressive waveform” option set to on, the previous waveform buffer remains on screen whilst PicoScope 7 draws the new “current” waveform alongside.

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• The above feature will enable filtered data (i.e., Low pass) to displayed simultaneously with live unfiltered data.
• This will allow the user to view signals continually on screen rather than waiting for the live waveform to be drawn before the software momentarily displays the filtered signal when the buffer is full. I.e., the user will now have a continual view of the filtered signal without having to stop the capture and scroll through the Waveform navigator.

The following video will help clarify the description and operation above



Feedback on the design and function of the “Previous progressive waveform” option would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Measurement “Limits” linked to “Actions”

Following on from our measurement “Limits” feature described earlier in this post, it is now possible to link “Limits” pass/fail results to “Actions”

• With Limits configured on your chosen measurement click on “Actions” to reveal the Actions dialogue box

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• Click on “Change event” button within the “Actions” dialogue box
• Below we have chosen “Measurement limits failure” as our “Event” upon which to return an “Action”
• Note below how Channel A Measurement (Frequency at peak) includes an upper limit of 200 Hz and a lower limit of 110 Hz

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• With these limits in mind and our chosen “Event”, we need to choose an “Action” by selecting “Add”
• Below we have opted for “Play sound” when the Measurements limits fail

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• Choose the desired sound, below we have opted for “Beep”

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• To summarise our configuration above, for as long as our “Frequency at peak” remains between 110 and 200 Hz, the measurement lozenge figures will remain black in colour. Should our “Frequency at peak” fall outside these limits, the measurement lozenge figures will change to red and the user will be notified with a “beep”

The following video demonstrates the above measurement feature using our Belt tension Guided Test

Feedback on the design and function of the “Measurement limits Action” feature would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software


PicoToolbox New Features 7.1.15
• Add support for Battery Capacity in upload
• Waveform Manager Waveform cards now contain Battery Capacity
• My Waveforms Waveform cards now contain Battery Capacity
• Search Waveform cards now contain Battery Capacity

Bug fixes in build 7.1.15
• Waveform upload hanging issue has been resolved in Waveform Manager
• Waveform upload error issues have been fixed in Waveform Manager
• Waveform editing issue has been resolved in Waveform Manager
• Resolve problem with offset being applied erroneously to AC signals with BNC+
• Resolve inconsistent behaviour when disconnecting or connecting PicoBNC+ probes
• Improve stability of Sent SPC decoder when adjusting Master Trigger Pulse Values using plus / minus buttons.

Moving now to the next build:

Thank you once again to the software teams for their continued dedication to the development of PicoScope 7 Automotive Early Access 7.1.16.17168 (inc. Pico Diagnostics 1.16.110.0) which can be downloaded soon here https://www.picoauto.com/downloads

New Features
When enabled, your Measurement limits pass and failure counts are displayed on the measurement lozenge.

• As described above, Measurement limits can be applied to a desired measurement
• With the Measurement lozenge size set to “M” (Medium) further information and indication of Failures & Passes are displayed
• Below we have a maximum number of buffers stored (36) with 4 failures and a total number of 78 passes displayed in the measurement lozenge
• We can therefore conclude, given that all our 4 measurement failures are present within the Waveform Navigator (29-35) all 74 previous waveforms (78 passes – 4 failures) passed the measurement limits

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Feedback on the design and function of the “Measurement lozenge display” feature would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

PSI5 Serial decoder

Once again, thank you to the serial decoder team at Pico, we can now introduce another decoder entitled “Peripheral sensor interface 5” or PSI5 for short

More information on the PSI5 decoder can be found here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Periphera ... nterface_5

• Click on the “More” button in the left-hand tool panel to reveal all the available options for PicoScope 7
• Click on the Serial decoding button to reveal all the serial decoder options
• Note: Clicking on the “Star” symbol to the left of the Serial decoding symbol will place the Serial decoding button in the left-hand tool panel where it will remain ready for use without having to select More
• The Serial decoding menu will now appear; click on PSI5 (Sensor) option and follow the set-up wizard to configure the decoder for the captured data

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Feedback on the design and function of the “PSI5 (Sensor) Serial decoder” feature would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

PicoToolbox New Features 7.1.16
• Battery Capacity now available to edit in My Waveforms
• Battery Capacity visible on the waveform cards returned by Search
• Text added to the Waveform Manager screen to describe the function of the screen
• Mileage added to the Waveform Manager edit screen
• Mileage support in the upload process
• Mileage visible on the Waveform Manager waveform cards
• Mileage visible on the My Waveforms waveform cards

Bug fixes 7.1.16
• Resolved issue where the trigger direction setting occasionally would not load correctly.


I hope this helps, take care………Steve

[Steve Smith]

Thank you once again to the software teams for their continued dedication to the development of PicoScope 7 Automotive Early Access 7.1.18.17431 (inc. Pico Diagnostics 1.16.121.0) which can be downloaded here https://www.picoauto.com/downloads

Starting with Build 7.1.17

New Features

A quick access shortcut has been added to the Measurement lozenge to set up “Action” events for measurement pass /fail limits

Following on from the above forum post viewtopic.php?p=104749#p104749 (Build 7.1.15) we were introduced to Measurement limits and applying “Actions” from the “Actions” dialog box. The “Actions” menu can now be rapidly accessed from the Measurement lozenge

• Click on the Measurement lozenge of your chosen measurement
• Below we have opted to click on the Channel A “Mean” Measurement lozenge to reveal “Action on failures” button
• Click on “Action on failures” to configure the required “Action” as described in the previous forum post

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In addition to the above “Actions” short cut, where measurement limits have been set, and failures have occurred, a short cut has been included to access the Waveform navigator.

• After setting the desired measurement limits, click on the “Show failed waveforms button” to open the Waveform Navigator dialog box where you can configure the navigator content accordingly
• Run PicoScope where the software will wait, capture and indicate any measurement limit failure within the Measurement lozenge.
• Stop PicoScope, the graph will now automatically open and display the Waveform Navigator viewport as configured
• Below we have configured our Waveform Navigator to show thumbnails of Measurement limit failures on Frequency (A)
• Upon stopping PicoScope the Waveform Navigator viewport has opened automatically to reveal 5 waveforms (containing measurement limit failures) out of a total of 14 captures

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Feedback on the design and function of the “Quick access controls” would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

PicoToolbox New Features

Mileage and Hours fields can now be included and edited from the Waveform Library or Waveform Manager cards

• Below we have chosen to edit a Waveform Manager card prior to uploading to the Reference Waveform Library (RWL) More information on the Waveform Manager can be seen here viewtopic.php?p=103911#p103911

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Feedback on the design and function of the “RWL & Waveform Manager” would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Bug fixes in build 7.1.17

• Resolve [Linux] Toolbox doesn't stay on the foreground when loading guide and settings file
• Resolve Save & Upload unavailable when new custom data is added
• Improve decoder: Start Edge control added to Manchester decoder for RC-5 decoding.
• AWG CSV files can now be imported with either comma or point decimals.
• Improve stability of Measurement limits feature

Build 7.1.18

New features

Measurement logging is a new feature that enables your measurement data to be recorded directly to an external csv file during capture. Such a feature will benefits users who require long-term data logging of measured parameters.

• Click on the Measurement button to reveal the measurement dialog box
• Choose the desired measurements, below we have opted for Top & Frequency on channel A
• Note the new tab within the measurement dialog box called “Logging”

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• Click on logging to reveal the measurement logging menu
• Note below the measurement logging feature is still in development, please accept the warning message to continue testing

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• Turn on the logging feature (Step 1 below)
• Name the file to be saved and click on the folder icon (Steps 2 & 3 below)
• Choose a file name and location within the Windows save dialog box (Steps 4 & 5 below)

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• Click within the graph view to close the measurement dialog box and run PicoScope
• Note below the measurement view ort tab is complemented with a red circle to indicate measurement recordings are live

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• Stop the scope and note that the captured recordings are automatically saved to your file name and location

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• Subsequent Running and Stopping of PicoScope 7 will automatically generate additional .csv files with the applicable suffix to avoid duplicate file names

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• Below we have the initial saved csv file containing our measurements where we can now take advantage of the search and graphing features of Excel

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Feedback on the design and function of the “Measurement logging” feature would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

New Rise/Fall time trigger added, allowing the ability to trigger on a signal with a specified rise or fall time.

• Click on the trigger lozenge to reveal the trigger dialog box
• Choose the trigger Mode then click on “Change Type”
• Note we can now choose to trigger on the Rise or Fall time of a signal
• The Rise & Fall trigger feature is still in development, please accept the warning message to continue testing

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• Configure the desired settings for the trigger which includes Source, Delay, Thresholds, Direction & Time condition
• Note below we have opted to trigger on a signal with a Rise time of Less than 100 ms between our Thresholds of 200 mV & 1.8 V

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• At first glance, it appears our signal above has triggered in error as the rise time after the trigger point is “Greater than” 100 ms (459.8 ms) See image below

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• Using the zoom feature of PicoScope 7 we can see the trigger has functioned perfectly by triggering on a rise time “Less than” 100 ms (See image below)

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The following video created by our Test & Measurement colleagues has the above trigger feature covered beautifully

Feedback on the design and function of the “Rise & Fall time trigger” feature would be most welcome. Click on More > Send Feedback within the software

Bug fixes

• Improved stability of trigger options
• Improve Save and Upload feature when custom data is added

PicoToolbox New Features

• Files and folders can now utilise the Drag and drop feature when using the Waveform Manager viewtopic.php?p=103911#p103911
• Hours can be edited in Search screen
• Nominal Battery Voltage visible on all waveform cards within the Waveform library
• Nominal Battery Voltage can be edited in all Edit screens within the Waveform Library
• Waveforms containing Nominal Battery Voltage can be uploaded to the Waveform Library

I hope this helps, take care……..Steve